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Year of success for service

Published Date:

6 Oct 2017 - 13:46

Developing blueprints for much-needed development, awards for excellence and improvements in services are just some of the achievements of Argyll and Bute Council’s Planning and Regulatory Services over the past year.

A review of 2016-17 highlights a series of successes that has enhanced the services Argyll and Bute Council provide to residents and businesses.

They include:

Masterplans for Dunbeg and Inveraray, which will deliver new homes, including affordable homes, commercial development and, in Dunbeg, road improvements

Council Excellence Awards for its work to help tackle serious and organised crime and for its work in sustainable design

Achieved one of the best customer satisfaction rates in Scotland for building standards

Processing planning applications faster than the Scottish average, and an increase in the time taken to process major applications

Approving 97 per cent of planning applications

Supporting the local economy by fast-tracking major applications that will be economically beneficial, such as fish farms

Winning a private sector contract to do building inspections at Faslane and Coulport – the only building standards service in the country to win a contract from the private sector

Building standards asked to carry out work for another council – this and the contract for the naval bases has helped bring in £100,000 in income for the Council

Successfully winning contract extension with Scottish Government and Food Standards Scotland until 2018 to monitor shellfish. This helps support the shellfish sector, retain jobs and protect public health.

Policy Lead for Planning and Regulatory Services, Councillor David Kinniburgh, said: “There was a great deal to be positive about over the past year.

“We have improved services, helped residents, supported the local economy and, in terms of winning national Government and private sector contracts, proved we are doing an excellent job in Argyll and Bute.

“We are committed to providing a first-class service for our local communities and businesses. When it comes to development we are a ‘can-do ‘ council, an enabler not a block, and the fact we are approving 97 per cent of applications, fast-tracking applications that will boost the economy and achieving high satisfaction rates demonstrates that.

“Also, in winning major contracts we are raising income that can be invested elsewhere to improve our services to people in Argyll and Bute.”